Business & Finance
Purchasing Managers
Plan, direct, or coordinate the activities of buyers, purchasing officers, and related workers involved in purchasing materials, products, and services. Includes wholesale or retail trade merchandising managers and procurement managers.
Median salary
$139,510
Typical range
$86k – $219k
Job outlook
+3% (about average)
AI exposure
Plan a path to Purchasing Managers
Education
Typical entry: Bachelor's degree
Plan my path to this →Typical progression
Purchasing Managers Intern
Internship
$42,750
~4 mos to advance
Junior Purchasing Managers
Entry / Junior
$85,500
~2 yrs to advance
Purchasing Managers
Established
$139,510
~3 yrs to advance
Senior Purchasing Managers
Senior
$179,325
Internships are a common on-ramp here — they speed up landing that first role and improve your odds, which is why the Safe and High-ceiling plans build one in.
Key skills
A typical day
- •Develop and implement purchasing and contract management instructions, policies, and procedures.
- •Locate vendors of materials, equipment or supplies, and interview them to determine product availability and terms of sales.
- •Prepare bid awards requiring board approval.
- •Direct and coordinate activities of personnel engaged in buying, selling, and distributing materials, equipment, machinery, and supplies.
- •Review purchase order claims and contracts for conformance to company policy.
Fields of study
Any field
Top colleges for Business & Finance
Explore all- University of Pennsylvania6% admit · $112,000 grad pay
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology4% admit · $124,000 grad pay
- Harvard University4% admit · $119,000 grad pay
- University of California, Berkeley11% admit · $97,000 grad pay
- New York University12% admit · $84,000 grad pay
Reputation-based selection; stats shown are outcome data per school.